Sermon -- 14th Sunday after Pentecost (September 14, 2025)

HOSEA 3:1-5

 A SPURNED LOVER REDEEMS HIS UNFAITHFUL BRIDE.

In the name + of Jesus.

    Even if you are unfamiliar with them, you probably have great respect for the prophets.  There have been many preachers throughout the history of the world.  Very few have had their words inspired by our Lord and preserved for God’s people until Judgment Day.  You may know next to nothing about the prophet Hosea.  Maybe you have never read the book of the Bible which bears his name.  Nevertheless, it is right to have respect for Hosea, but you probably would not envy him. 

     Consider what Hosea recorded: “When the Lord first spoke through Hosea, the Lord said to Hosea, “Go.  Take for yourself an immoral wife and children produced by sexual immorality, because the land has been committing flagrant immorality, turning away from the Lord.’  So he went and took Gomer daughter of Diblaim” (Hosea 1:2-3).  How would you like that?  “Go and find a floozy.  Marry her.  She will continually cheat on you.  She will have children, but they will not be yours.  They will be children of infidelity.  Love her anyway.”  That is what God commanded Hosea to do.

     It is not the only time our Lord gave his prophets bizarre commands.  While the prophets spoke for the Lord, the Lord occasionally had the prophets’ lives be the sermon.  This was the case with Hosea.  He was the faithful and loving husband whose wife was unfaithful to him.  Hosea was an image of the Lord.  Gomer was an image of the northern tribes of Israel who turned away from the Lord, again and again, to chase after other sources of truth and pleasure.  Israel fell in love with whatever promised prosperity, pleasure, and power.  They pursued other lovers and spurned the Lord.

     What should a spurned lover do?  How should a faithful husband respond to a bride who cheats on him repeatedly?  I can’t think of anyone who would argue, “Well, he should put up with that and accept that this is who she is.”  No, we would expect the husband to divorce his wife and to send her away, perhaps with a few choice words.

     At first, the Lord’s words were calls to return.  The Lord sent prophets like Hosea to his beloved again and again.  Again and again, he called them back to him, wooing them and pleading with them to turn away from their false gods and their perverse worship.  Again and again, Israel spurned the Lord’s overtures.  The Lord cannot be faulted for his efforts.  He was, indeed, slow to anger.  He was most patient for a favorable response.  He did not get it; and finally, judgment came upon Israel in harsh and cruel ways. 

     The nation of Assyria came and ravaged God’s people.  Those who survived the sword, starvation, and disease were carried off into captivity where they died.  It happened just as the Lord had warned through Hosea: “The people of Israel will live many days without king or prince, without sacrifice or sacred memorial stones, and without the special vest or family idols.” (Hosea 3:4).  The kingdom and the worship ceased during years of captivity.  The Lord had warned such judgment would come upon those who spurned him.  Perhaps the people did not think the Lord would follow through.  Many still don’t.  Don’t dismiss God’s warnings, and don’t confuse God’s patience with indifference.  The judgment he had warned about came at last—with crushing violence and banishment.  And it was deserved.

     There are many today who reject the notion that the Lord would send people to hell despite all his warnings.  They argue that a loving God would never do that.  Or if he would, they argue that he is not a loving God.  Perhaps you have kicked around those thoughts yourself.  “What kind of God is this who demands love and obedience under the threat of eternal damnation if he doesn’t get it?”  When the argument is set up that way, it surely makes our Lord look petty.  Do not be deceived by people who present God this way.  It is like the people who ask, “So, have you stopped beating your wife?”  A “Yes” means you admit that you have beaten your wife.  A “No” means you still are beating your wife.  The word of the Lord is most certainly not, “Love me or I’ll damn you.”

     Many people fail to understand this: No one begins his life in the kingdom of God.  No one is even neutral, as if God decides to toss some aside because he can.  All are sinners.  All stand outside of God’s love because of this sinful condition.  The Scriptures testify: “The mind-set of the sinful flesh is hostile to God” (Romans 8:7).  God is regarded as the enemy.  So, if anyone enters in the kingdom of God, it is because the Lord has brought him in.  If anyone loves God, it is God who has produced that love in him.  The Bible teaches, “We love because he first loved us” (1 John 4:19).  He demonstrates a love that is unexpected and unearned.  He woos those who are unfaithful to be his very own.  He shows himself a faithful lover, not plotting to take, but seeking to give.

     If a woman has racked up some significant debt—credit cards, school loans, car payments, what have you—the man who marries her assumes those debts as his own.  Even though he did not accumulate them, he becomes responsible for them.  This is what Jesus has done for his bride, the Church.  In fact, for more than the Church, but for the world.  All people are accountable to God for their lives.  Sins deserve to be judged.  The guilty are held accountable.  They must pay the price.  But Jesus assumed the guilt for all.  He made himself accountable for the sins of the world.  He submitted himself to divine judgment, and he paid the price.  Although perfectly faithful to his heavenly Father, Jesus died as an adulterer, a cheater, a manipulator, and a liar; for the obscene, the impure, and the perverse. 

     Jesus covers sinners with his own innocence.  He opens the kingdom of heaven to those who were destined for hell.  If people go to hell, it is not because God failed them.  God has loved them with a selfless love.  The Lord does not thunder, “Love me or go to hell.”  He pleads, “To escape hell, come to me.  Don’t love the things that result in death.  Love me, for I will give you life and peace and hope.”  The spurned lover continues to reach out to those who have been unfaithful to him.

     Sadly, Israel did not listen or care.  They spurned the Lord for other gods.  They devoted their love to others.  Like Gomer, Hosea’s wife, they prostituted themselves to whoever made promises, even though those promises were empty.  They were willingly deceived, to their own destruction.

     Now, this is where God’s instructions to Hosea are incredible.  This is where Hosea’s life became the second part of the sermon he was preaching.  “The LORD said to me, ‘Go again.  Show love to a woman who is loved by another man, a woman who keeps committing adultery.  Show love just as the LORD loves the people of Israel, even though they keep turning to other gods and loving the raisin cakes.’ (Note: used in pagan worship.)  So I bought her for myself for fifteen pieces of silver and nine bushels of barley.  I said to her, ‘You will stay with me for many days.  You must not be promiscuous.  You must not be with any other man, and I will also be for you’” (Hosea 3:1-3).  The Lord sent the spurned lover to redeem his unfaithful bride. 

     Hosea is an image of Jesus Christ.  He is the Groom, and the Church is his Bride.  Even though each of us has been unfaithful and have sinned against him, the spurned lover redeemed his unfaithful bride.  St. Paul wrote, “Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, by cleansing her with the washing of water in connection with the Word.  He did this so that he could present her to himself as a glorious church, having no stain or wrinkle or any such thing, but so that she would be holy and blameless” (Ephesians 5:25-27).  The price Jesus paid to redeem us was himself.  He spared nothing, but gave himself completely into a cursed death to rescue us from dying the death we have earned.  In love for us, Jesus cleansed us of every blemish and stain from sin. 

     A bride on her wedding day wants to be as beautiful as possible.  But if a bride wakes up on her wedding day to discover a blemish on her face, she panics.  She fears that her groom will focus on her blemish rather than her beauty.  (News flash, ladies: He won’t.)  The Lord Jesus, however, removes every blemish from us.  Rather than leaving us in rags, he has clothed us with garments of salvation.  He presents us to himself in radiance and beauty and purity.  How great is his forgiveness!  He does not scowl at us, reminding us again and again of how we turned our wandering eyes to sin.  He does not threaten or manipulate us.  Rather, he speaks tenderly to his Bride, continually professing his faithful love to his Church.

     This is one reason why our Lord calls for chastity among people and why he holds up marriage in such high regard.  Those who are single are to reserve themselves for the one person to whom he or she will be united in marriage.  Marital relations are to be reserved for married couples.  And married couples are to be exclusive to one another.  Each is to be devoted to the other, love each other, and exalt each other.  For every marriage is the image of Jesus Christ to his Church.  Everything outside of the union of one man and one woman in a life-long union perverts the image of Christ and his Church.  The Lord calls the perversion of his image an abomination.  On the other hand, the union of Christ and his Church is glorious.  That is why God’s establishment of the union between one man and one woman in marriage is glorious as well.

     Even though Israel was unfaithful to the Lord, the Lord remained faithful to his bride.  The Lord would not forget or forsake his covenant promise.  The spurned lover redeemed his unfaithful bride.  The unfaithful bride repented and was restored to him again.  Hosea had foretold it: “Afterward the people of Israel will return and seek the LORD their God and David their king.  They will come trembling to the LORD and to his goodness in the latter days” (Hosea 3:5). 

     We come trembling before our God, not because he will damn us if we don’t.  Rather, it is because we know that we are not worthy of his love.  And yet, we marvel.  For, the Son of David loves us faithfully and fervently.  Therefore, we pledge ourselves to be his exclusively.  For, he is the only one whose love is truly pure and selfless, and he is the only one who saves.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Sermon -- 13th Sunday after Pentecost (September 7, 2025)

LUKE 14:25-35

RECOGNIZE THE COST OF BEING JESUS’ DISCIPLE.

In the name + of Jesus.

     The popularity of Jesus was amazing.  It is not hard to understand why.  Jesus healed many with incurable disabilities.  Jesus had multiplied bread and fish to feed multitudes.  Who could blame people for wanting to be near him?  Even King Herod longed to meet Jesus because he had heard about the miracles.  When he finally did meet Jesus and Jesus would not perform for him, Herod’s fascination turned into mockery.  The crowds also turned from Jesus when they discovered he was not there for their entertainment and to hand out endless freebies.

     Jesus told the crowds that there was a cost to being his disciple.  Jesus was no huckster, conning people in order to get something out of them.  Jesus had come to deliver people from their sins.  That, of course, meant that people needed to recognize that their sins were a problem.  It is not always a love of wickedness that is a problem; it is often a love of blessings.  All our blessings are gifts from God, but they are not to be praised higher than the God who gives them.  The First Commandment is the greatest commandment: “You shall have no other gods.  What does this mean?  We should fear, love, and trust in God above all things” (Luther’s Small Catechism: First Commandment).  All things.  Even precious blessings.

     Recognize the cost of being Jesus’ disciple.  Jesus revealed that cost in shocking terms.  “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, even his own life, he cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:26).  This is hyperbole.  (St. Luke likes to do that.)  Jesus does not forbid you to love your family.  The 4^th Commandment tells us to honor father and mother.  That is God’s word, and it is good.  But the 4^th Commandment is never higher than the 1^st Commandment.  So, Jesus intentionally used shocking language to show that being his disciple demands a total commitment.  If you would ever have to choose between Jesus and your family and friends, you would forsake your family and friends before you forsook Jesus.  Recognize the cost for being Jesus’ disciple.

     Our Lord does not expect parents to withhold love from their children.  Even if your child goes to jail, you will still love your child.  You may be disappointed in him, but you will still love him.  However, parents who love their children will also love them enough to tell them when they are wrong.  Discipline is not cruelty; it is done out of love for the good of the child.  So, if your son or daughter is engaged in sinful living, love for your child will compel you to admonish him.  Love for Jesus will compel you to uphold the truth of his word.  Love will tell that child, “This is what the Lord says,” and then hold firm to that truth.  You may be tempted to keep silent because you fear that you will lose your children and grandchildren.  And you may.  But if your child persists in his sins, you will lose him for eternity.  It is important to recognize that cost, too. 

     Jesus said, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, even his own life, he cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:26).  Jesus comes first.  That is the first and greatest commandment.  It is non-negotiable.  It does not forbid you to love your loved ones, but it commands you to keep things in order.  Recognize the cost of being Jesus’ disciple.

     While Jesus is blunt in telling us that there is a cost to being his disciple, recognize that there was a tremendous cost for Jesus to be your Savior.  God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son.  He not only gave him to the world, he gave him to suffer and die for the world. 

     Recognize this cost!  It would be one thing if all mankind had been perfectly devoted to the Lord but were taken hostage by the devil.  Then God would be acting to deliver innocent victims.  But this is what the Lord says: “At the appointed time, while we were still helpless, Christ died for the ungodly.  It is rare indeed that someone will die for a righteous person.  Perhaps someone might actually go so far as to die for a person who has been good to him.  But God shows his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:6-8).  God the Father gave up his Son for people who naturally and willingly live in rebellion to his word.  Nevertheless, the Father did not withhold his love.  He sent Jesus to rescue rebels and to die for the guilty.

     Recognize the cost our Lord paid to redeem sinners.  He did not even hedge his bets, sending his Son to be slain for a select few who would eventually prove themselves worthy.  For, no one is worthy.  No one is an innocent hostage.  All are sinners, but God loves all.  He cares for everyone, no matter what their story is.  God loves the world; so, he sent his only begotten Son to be the ransom price for the world.

     Jesus recognized the cost, too.  Jesus did not bask in his popularity.  His ego certainly could have blown up because of the multitudes around him.  But Jesus never forgot his mission.  He was not sent to be popular, but to be the sin offering for the world.  Just days before he was crucified, Jesus told his apostles, “Now my soul is troubled.  And what shall I say?  ‘Father, save me from this hour’?  No, this is the reason I came to this hour” (John 12:27).  Jesus recognized the cost.  He would be consumed in the fiery wrath of his Father for sins he did not commit.  Jesus would suffer damnation even for sinners who would never repent.  But this is the love of God—covering the cost for every sinner so that no one should have to perish.  Jesus recognized the cost, and he willing paid the price for you.  While your salvation was free, it was not cheap.

     Now to you, Jesus gives salvation and forgiveness without any cost.  Your baptism was free.  You have God’s word preached to you for free.  (You do not pay your pastor to preach.  Preaching is free.  Your pastor is paid so he can give his full time to the word of God and prayer.)  The Lord’s Supper is delivered to you for free.  Your sins are absolved for free.  It is like the jailer in Philippi who was about to kill himself because he thought Paul and Silas had escaped.  When Paul stopped him from killing himself, he fell at the feet of Paul and Silas and begged, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved” (Acts 16:30)?  He was convinced that there must be some grand sacrifice to make, some great deed to do, some condition to be met.  Paul gave him none of that.  Paul told him, “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31).  Though it cost Jesus immensely to save you, he gives his salvation for free.

     Still, you ought to recognize that there is a cost to being Jesus’ disciple.  Jesus alerted the crowds that being his disciple would not be easy.  There would be a cost, and people should consider carefully if they would be willing to endure it.  He told a parable about a man who wanted to build a tower, laid the foundation, but failed to complete it.  He had not really considered the cost.  He told another parable about a king who was preparing to go to war.  Before he mobilized his army, he calculated “if he (was) able with ten thousand to oppose the one who (was coming) against him with twenty thousand” (Luke 14:31).  Just as we are to consider the cost in earthly endeavors, so also we should recognize there is a cost to being Jesus’ disciple.

     The cost of being Jesus’ disciple was summed up in Jesus’ first proclamation recorded by St. Mark: “The kingdom of God has come near!  Repent, and believe in the gospel” (Mark 1:15)!  It is that word “repent” that stands out.  Being a disciple of Jesus is much more than a mental exercise where we know some facts.  It is more than a sigh of relief where we say, “Thank God there will be no punishment for my sins!”  Being Jesus’ disciple means actions as well as faith.  It is a heart, a mind, and a body devoted to Jesus.  It is a life of following his word above everything else.

     Recognize the cost of being Jesus’ disciple.  It means daily contrition and repentance.  Daily, we do battle against our sins.  Daily, we fight to overcome temptation.  Jesus said, “Whoever does not carry his own cross and follow me cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:27).  As long as we are in this flesh, we must daily put to death the sinful nature and all its desires.  That’s what the cross is for—to put our sin to death.  Just because your desires are intense does not mean they are good.  Just because something brings you pleasure does not mean it pleases God.  Jesus’ disciples follow his words—more than feelings, more than family, and more than friends. 

     On some days, your struggle will be fierce.  But it is a struggle that needs to continue.  If you do struggle, that is good.  It shows you know the way of righteousness and strive to stay on it.  If you give up the struggle, it means that you are letting sin sweep you away, and you will be lost to the kingdom of God.  The devil will convince you that this way is easier.  Your friends may like you more.  Your family may commend you for choosing them over church.  But recognize that your desire to belong and to be praised comes with a cost, too.  Jesus said it: You “cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:26).

     The Lord does not leave you hopeless or helpless in your struggles.  He continues to forgive your sins.  He continues to strengthen you in the battle against your flesh.  He continues to show you that the struggle is worth it.  He continues to remind you that there is an eternal victory for all who struggle, battle, and endure; and he is with you so that you will endure.  If you would remain Jesus’ disciple, then continue to hear his word, to confess your sins, to come to the altar for his body and blood, and to pray.

     Recognize the cost of being Jesus’ disciple.  Jesus said, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, even his own life, he cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:26).  Does that sound steep?  Then recognize this: When you die, you lose all these things anyway.  When you stand before the Lord in judgment, none of these things will be with you to help you, much less save you.  Your loved ones will sing your praises at your funeral, but Jesus’ judgment is the only one that will matter.  Good news: Jesus lived and died for you.  He has paid the ransom.  He will commend you at your judgment.  In the end, he is all you need.  In the end, he is all you will have.  You can enjoy your blessings and your loved ones, but do not fear losing them.  Forsake them if you must; for there is only one who saves.  If your loved ones are Jesus’ disciples, praise God, because then you will get them all back.  And together, you will rejoice with angels and archangels and all Jesus’ disciples forevermore.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Sermon -- Summer Sermon Series: Lord's Prayer, 7th Petition (August 31, 2025)

LUKE 11:1-4

DELIVER US FROM EVIL.

In the name + of Jesus.

    There is a translation question with this final petition.  Some have translated it, “Deliver us from evil,” and others have it, “Deliver us from the Evil One” (Matthew 6:13).  Either translation is valid.  If your Bible has one translation, there is likely a footnote to offer the other.  Either we are praying to be delivered from the devil, or we are praying to be delivered from all the evils that are caused by the devil.  No matter which one you pick, your concerns are valid, and your prayers are proper. 

     If you surveyed people and asked them what kind of evils they want to be delivered from, you would probably get similar answers whether they are Christians or not.  What is on your list?  Do you want to be delivered from fear?  There is plenty that strikes fear in our hearts.  Some fears come from headlines or from phone calls.  Other fears are fabricated as we fret over things that have not happened and are unlikely to happen.  But we would like to be delivered from all fears.  Do you want to be delivered from poor health, aches, and pains?  That’s understandable.  No one likes to feel lousy.  We could go on, of course. 

     Almost everything we want to be delivered from comes because we are living in a world that has been corrupted by sin.  The world is broken as evidenced by sickness, disease, war, crime, poverty, debt, pain, loss, and death.  Politicians promise to address these things.  They mean well, but they cannot fix what sin has corrupted.  Doctors write prescriptions to fix these things.  But doctors are not miracle workers.  Sometimes what is broken is beyond repair.  Job’s assessment of life may sound pessimistic, but he is right: “Man born of woman has a few short days, and they are full of anxiety” (Job 14:1).  We live in a broken world.  Bad things happen.  That is why we pray, “Deliver us from evil.”  Your concerns are valid, and your prayers are proper.

     When the devil came into the world, he brought the curse of sin upon it and all the people in it.  When Jesus came into the world, he came to deliver us from every evil in it and from the Evil One who caused it.  “This is why the Son of God appeared: to destroy the works of the Devil” (1 John 3:8).  Jesus began to reverse the brokenness of this world through the miracles he did.  Isaiah had foretold this work: “The eyes of the blind will be opened, and the ears of the deaf will be unplugged.  The crippled will leap like a deer, and the tongue of the mute will sing for joy” (Isaiah 35:5,6).  What Isaiah foretold, Jesus did.  Through his miracles, we get a glimpse of the kingdom of heaven.  In the kingdom of heaven, there are no blind, deaf, mute, or lame.  There will be no need for walkers, hearing aids, corrective lenses, or speech therapists.  When we finally enter the kingdom of heavenly glory, there will be no evils. 

     This is what people pray for and long for.  But these are not the greatest evils we face.  No one is banned from heaven because he needs a wheelchair.  No one is forbidden because the doctor reported bad test results.  There is no car accident, no infection, no disfigured body, and no epidemic that will keep anyone out of the kingdom of heaven.  Even if such things send people to an early grave, they do not condemn.  You can pray that the Lord will deliver you and defend you so that you will never experience such evils.  Your concerns are valid, and your prayers are proper.  But understand that the hardships and frustrations of life are not your chief problem.  Even if you are delivered from these evils, you still have not been delivered from the Evil One.

     One time when Jesus was preaching in a house, some people tried to see him.  They were carrying a man on a mat because he was paralyzed.  But there was no chance to get to Jesus because the house was packed.  So, they carried him up to the roof top.  Roofs in Palestine were flat with a parapet around them.  They could be used as a spare room or as a workspace.  These people carried their friend up there and began to remove the tiles from the roof.  Once the hole was big enough, they lowered him on his mat right down in front of Jesus.  It was no secret what they hoped Jesus would do for the paralyzed man. 

     “When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralyzed man, ‘Son, your sins are forgiven’” (Mark 2:5).  I have to believe that some were there thinking, “What is he doing?  Isn’t it obvious that this man was brought to have his legs restored?  How is the forgiveness of sins going to help him?”  That is what many people would like to have from Jesus—relief from physical problems.  People want to be delivered from the evils of failing health, threat of war, school shootings, acne, and poison ivy.  If we have that, we believe, then we have been delivered from all the evils that concern us.  Then we have enough.

     The man who was brought to Jesus obviously wanted to have strength restored to his legs.  He wanted to be able to serve his family.  He wanted to be free from being dependent on his friends or on charity for all his needs.  It was a valid concern.  Calling upon Jesus to heal him was a proper prayer.  But this man’s paralysis was not going to keep him out of the kingdom of heaven.  Sin does that.  Sin brings divine judgment, wrath, and death.  Sin comes with a curse and results in eternal punishment.  And sin marks us all.  Whether life is easy or stressful, whether you enjoy robust health or endure chronic illness, whether you are financially stable or struggle to pay the bills, you are a sinner.  There is no salvation for those who die in their sins.  And that is why Jesus told this man, “Son, your sins are forgiven” (Mark 2:5).  Jesus addressed the great evil that afflicted him.  In mercy, he delivered him from perdition.  In love, he also delivered him from paralysis.

     Do not underestimate the significance of your prayers.  Our Lord spares our country and community from many dangers when we call upon him to deliver us from evil.  We don’t know the evils that our Father in heaven delivers us from.  We only know the evils that still happen.  That makes us wonder if our prayers do any good.  It is also why the godless mock us for our prayers.  Just last week, a former student opened fire on the children and teachers at a Roman Catholic school in Minneapolis.  Unbelievers spout off, “What good are your prayers?  Those children were actually praying when this happened to them!”  (The mayor of Minneapolis said as much.)  But this is what the Lord says: “The prayer of a righteous person is able to do much because it is effective” (James 5:16).  He was not lying when he said this to you.

     We pray “Deliver us from evil” because we want to be safe from the Evil One and all the evils he produces.  The evils produce fears in us.  COVID had many fearing for their lives.  A school shooting has every parent fearing for their children.  Your concerns are valid, and your prayers are proper.  Your fears give you every reason to pray.  But fears also distort our focus.  Our focus shifts from the heavenly goal to maintaining earthly peace and security.  Rather than listen to our Lord and his promises, we listen to people who promise that their ideas will produce peace and security for us here and now.  But Jesus issued this warning: “Do not fear those who can kill the body but cannot kill the soul.  Rather, fear the one who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matthew 10:28).  Jesus is telling you not to fear the Evil One or any evils that may bring harm or death.  The devil may want people to go to hell, but he cannot send anyone there.  War, crime, and disease may bring death, but they do not damn.  The only one who can damn or send anyone to hell is the Son of God.  All judgment has been entrusted to him; so, fear him.

     But don’t just fear him.  Flee to him!  For, this very same Son of God came so that we will not be destroyed both soul and body in hell.  Our fear is not that we would die, but that we would die apart from the Son of God because the one who could destroy both soul and body in hell has come to rescue us from that judgment.  The Son of God became a body-and-soul man to redeem your body and soul from sin, death, and hell.  In order to deliver you from the grasp of the Evil One, Jesus substituted himself for you.  The judgment and punishment that we should have received was taken by Jesus.  Jesus died the cursed death for you—totally forsaken and utterly rejected by his Father for the sins he was bearing.  Jesus’ death was an evil death—not because he was falsely charged by the priests, not because he was unjustly sentenced by Pontius Pilate, not because he was treated violently by Roman soldiers, and not because he was stripped of all dignity as he hung from the cross.  Jesus’ death was an evil death because he died under God’s curse.  Jesus did this to deliver you from an evil death and to grant you a blessed death.

     A blessed death is not that you die peacefully, which would be nice.  It is not that you would be surrounded by your family, which would also be nice.  Rather, Jesus taught us to pray that “when our last hour comes, [our Father would] grant us a blessed end and graciously take us from this world of sorrow to himself in heaven” (Luther’s Small Catechism: Lord’s Prayer, 7^th Petition).  This is a blessed death because it is died in the faith.  Those baptized children in Minneapolis may have died by a violent, evil, and senseless act, but they died a blessed death.  They were marked by Jesus, and they went to be with Jesus.  The goal of every Christian is not to die at an old age.  It is not to die a peaceful death.  It is to die a blessed death, that is, to die in the faith.  Ultimately, that is our prayer: “Deliver us from evil.”  It is our utmost concern, and it is a most proper prayer. 

     It is also where we draw our comfort, no matter what circumstances we endure.  The Lord Jesus Christ went into death to conquer it for us.  The Savior rose body-and-soul from the grave to assure you that you, too, will rise body-and-soul to dwell in the house of the Lord forever.  Even if you die in an act of unspeakable evil, Jesus delivers you from the Evil One, from an evil death, and from every evil that has ever plagued mankind. 

     If you surveyed what evils people want to be delivered from, you would get similar answers from Christians and non-Christians alike.  People long to have good health, good relationships, peace, safety, and the like.  While many people wish for all these things, you and I only have the wait for them.  We pray, “Deliver us from evil,” and our Father in heaven will.  He will grant you a blessed end.  He will bring you to the unending joy, goodness, and peace of Paradise.  Your concerns are valid.  Your prayers are proper.  And your Father in heaven hears and answers.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Sermon -- Summer Sermon Series: Lord's Prayer, 5th Petition (August 17, 2025)

LUKE 11:1-4

FORGIVE US OUR TRESPASSES AS WE FORGIVE THOSE WHO TRESPASS AGAINST US.

In the name + of Jesus.

    Of all the commands our Lord has given, perhaps the hardest one to observe is this one: “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving one another, just as God in Christ has forgiven us” (Ephesians 4:32).  It is hard to forgive those who have sinned against us.  We have our reasons.  One is that forgiveness is not justice.  Justice says that anyone who commits a crime or a sin should pay a price.  When someone sins against you, it is personal.  Your sense of justice boils over to vengeance.  Our pride demands retribution.  Some call it getting even.  It is not.  It is upping the ante and giving it back worse than you got it. 

     St. Paul tells us what the Lord expects of us and why: “(Forgive) one another, just as God in Christ has forgiven us” (Ephesians 4:32).  God the Father forgives us freely.  That’s because Jesus Christ willingly paid the price for our sins.  If we are Christians, then we are to act like Christ, forgiving people freely and eagerly.  But we do not.

     Why not?  We have our reasons.  Maybe you’ve argued, “They don’t deserve it.”  And actually, that is true.  No one deserves forgiveness.  God’s command is, “Love your neighbor as yourself.”  When people sin against you, they do not give you the love they owe you.  If someone does not give you what they owe you, they are indebted to you.  You know it, and you want to make sure that he who sinned against you knows it, too.  If you just cancel the debt, you gain nothing.  If you refuse to forgive, you get to hold his sin over his head, claim moral superiority, and have control over that person.  That sounds much more appealing.

     We pray: “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.”  If you think you have good reasons to not forgive those who trespass against you, don’t you think that the Father has more and better reasons to not forgive you?  God pours out his love upon you daily.  He provides all you need for body and life.  He gave you skills and abilities and opportunities to enjoy your interests.  He fills the world with beauty and creature comforts.  All this he does because he is your good and merciful Father in heaven, and not because you have earned or deserved it.  For all this, you ought to thank and praise, serve and obey him.  This is most certainly true.

     But that’s now how it works out, is it?  God shows us how we can serve and obey him in his Commandments.  But we are convinced that we know better than our Father in heaven.  We ignore what God has to say, either in sinful weakness or in outright defiance.  This is especially true when our Lord calls us to forgive those who trespass against us.  We won’t.  We have our pride.  We’d rather bear a grudge.

     How should the Lord respond when we do not give him the obedience we owe him?  We might think that God should just forgive us.  We have our reasons.  We assume that our sins are not so serious for God to be upset by them.  We believe that God would tell us that our anger is justified and that we are right to withhold forgiveness.  Maybe we think that God really won’t carry out the punishment he threatens and that our sins will suffer no real consequences.  We might want to think that, but God does not. 

     If the Lord does nothing about our sins, then we don’t need to take God or his word seriously.  If there is no price to pay, who cares what we do?  But this is what the Lord says, “We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he did while in the body, whether good or bad” (2 Corinthians 5:10).  This is why we pray for our Lord to forgive us our trespasses.  For, there is a price to be paid by any who do not give God the love and obedience he is owed.  If he does not forgive, then we have no hope for heaven.  None.

     Can the Lord be just and still be merciful?  He is both through his Son, Jesus.  Jesus came because the Father does take his Commandments seriously.  He does not set aside his judgment against the guilty.  Rather, he sent Jesus to become the guilty one for us.  This is why Jesus went to the cross.  There, God the Father carried out his justice.  All your guilt was taken by Jesus.  He was made THE guilty one.  Jesus was sentenced, condemned, and put to death—for, that is the wages of sin.  Jesus paid the price for you.  All of God’s punishment was absorbed in him.  You, on the other hand, have received full pardon.  The Lord does not treat you as your sins deserve because Jesus was treated as your sins deserve.  This allows God to be both just and merciful.  As St. Paul wrote to the Romans: “He did this to demonstrate his justice at the present time, so that he would be both just and the one who justifies the person who has faith in Jesus” (Romans 3:26).  Having been shown such mercy, our Lord calls on us to be merciful to others and to forgive those who have trespassed against us.

     To illustrate this, Jesus told a parable (Matthew 18:21-35).  He said that the kingdom of heaven is like a king whose servant owed him millions of dollars.  The servant begged for mercy, promising to pay back everything.  This servant never stood a chance to repay the debt.  So, out of mercy, the king cancelled the debt.  The servant was free.  That servant went and found a fellow servant who owed him 100 days’ wages.  He demanded to be repaid what he was owed.  Just as the first servant did, the fellow servant pleaded for mercy and promised to repay everything.  The first servant refused.  He demanded what he was owed.  He had his fellow servant and his family hauled off to debtor’s prison.  When word got back to the king, he said, “‘You wicked servant!  I forgave you all that debt when you begged me to.  Should you not have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had mercy on you?’  His master was angry and handed him over to the jailers until he could pay back everything he owed.” (Matthew 18:32-34).  Jesus, then, gives us this warning: “This is what my heavenly Father will also do to you unless each one of you forgives his brother from his heart’” (Matthew 18:35). 

     Every sin we commit is against our Lord.  Every lustful thought is about using our neighbor for our own gratification.  This is an abuse of the neighbor God has given you.  Every complaint despises God’s provisions and promises.  Every selfish act exalts our own will over God’s will.  Every spirit of revenge usurps God’s role as judge.  Every sin we commit is against our Lord, but not every sin is against you.  Not every act of violence is against you.  Not every snide remark is against you.  But some sins are.  Sin is love that is owed you but denied you.  It is like the debt of 100 days’ wages which was owed by a fellow servant.  It is substantial, and we don’t need to pretend it’s not.  But it is minimal compared to what we owe God and have denied him.  Our debt to God is not only substantial, it is insurmountable. 

     And yet, the Lord Jesus Christ was pleased to pay that debt for you.  He paid a debt he did not owe because you had a debt you could not pay.  And he continues to do this.  The blood which was shed for your sin is delivered to you here again and again to cleanse you of your sin.  The body which bore your guilt at the cross is delivered to you here and continues to pardon you of every offense.  The Lord does not grow weary of forgiving the penitent.  His grace is greater than your sins. 

     If we bear the name of Christ, then we are called to be Christ-like in how we treat other people.  We pray, “Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.”  Is this forgiveness deserved?  No.  Grace, mercy, and forgiveness are never deserved.  Grace, mercy, and forgiveness come from the giver.  They are given freely because the giver desires to be compassionate, longs for reconciliation, and peace—just as God, in Christ, treats you, loves you, and forgives you.

     We pray, “Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.”  In some cases, you will find it hard to do that.  Some sins against you are especially painful.  They have damaged reputations and relationships.  They cannot be undone.  How can you forgive someone who has inflicted such harm?  First of all, you do not have to pretend that sins are not painful or evil.  When Joseph addressed his brothers about their sin, he stated, “You meant evil against me” (Genesis 50:20).  He did not tell them, “Oh, it’s okay,” because it wasn’t.  It was evil.  There is nothing wrong about acknowledging that.

     Secondly, you do not need to follow the adage, “Forgive and forget.”  Can you really forget the pain that was done to you?  Do you think the first Christians ever forgot the harm that St. Paul had done to them?  Do you think Bethsheba ever forgot David’s arranged murder of her husband?  Joseph surely did not forget his brothers selling him into slavery.  So, you may never forget.  Forgiveness is not forgetting.  Forgiveness is pardoning the offense.  It is relinquishing your right to avenge yourself.  It is choosing to not hold it over another and to remind him what he did over and over again—which tells him that you have not really forgiven anything.  Psalm 103 declares, “(The Lord) does not treat us as our sins deserve.  He does not repay us according to our guilty deeds” (Psalm 103:10).  Forgiveness means that we treat people likewise—again, not because it is deserved, but because it is needed.

     Thirdly, it should be noted that there is an immense chasm between refusing to forgive and struggling to forgive.  If you refuse to forgive, that means you are insisting upon justice and vengeance.  If you insist on that, the Lord will concur with your desire, and he will carry out justice and vengeance upon you.  Jesus warned, “With the measure you use it will be measured back to you” (Luke 6:38).

     If, however, you are struggling to forgive those who trespass against you, that shows you know it is right to forgive from the heart.  You are doing battle with your sinful nature which would rather bear the grudge.  These battles are usually hard.  The only way to overcome is not to focus on the wounds you have received, but to focus on the wounds which Jesus has received for you.  Only Jesus’ mercy can stir up mercy within you.  Only Jesus’ compassion can make you compassionate.  Jesus loves you with a love that is undeserved, but it is also undeniable and unending.  When he pours that into you, it will spill over onto others, even upon those who have trespassed against you.

     “Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.”  Rejoice that God does not base his forgiveness upon ours.  Rather, we base our forgiveness upon God’s.  We get to be merciful, because he is merciful.  And his mercy endures forever.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Sermon -- Summer Sermon Series: Lord's Prayer, 4th Petition (August 3, 2025)

LUKE 11:1-3

GIVE US THIS DAY OUR DAILY BREAD.

In the name + of Jesus.

      Satan engages in a continual attack on the Scriptures, and he attacks on many fronts.  One on-going attack is against Creation.  The Bible declares, “God created the man in his own image.  In the image of God he created him.  Male and female he created them” (Genesis 1:27).  Many reject the “male and female” of God’s creation.  They insist that you can be both, or neither, or that you can change from one to the other, sometimes from day to day.

     When God created male and female, he also gave them particular roles.  To the man, he gave the role of protector and provider.  To the woman, he gave the role of helper and child-bearer.  Modern people have cast off these roles.  Instead of regarding them as blessings which God gave, people cry out, “Destroy the patriarchy!”  Women are taught that the role of man is to be despised and craved at the same time.

     Another attack on Creation is the theory of evolution.  This, we are told, is not even open to debate anymore.  The entire universe and every life in it are supposed to have happened by pure chance.  If God gets credit for anything, he is said to have given creation its start.  After that, God simply let things happen as they did.  Death, then, is not a curse, but a natural and necessary step for improvement of the species.  Sin is regarded as a societal construct, meaning that a majority decides what is sinful or not.  So, the goal is no longer to stop committing the sin which inflicts guilt, but to get more people to say it is not evil.  With evolution, the origin of mankind is murky.  When exactly did the knuckle dragging species become sentient human beings?  Adam and Eve are regarded as mythical figures, not historical people.  If so, there is no original sin.  Then sin and death have no connection.  If Genesis 1-3 (the creation of the world, the forming of the man and the woman, the fall into sin, and the promise of a Savior) is fictional, then what do we need a Savior for?  To be saved from what?  In the end, evolution makes Jesus Christ useless and unnecessary.  And that is the point of Satan’s attack on Creation.

     “(We) believe in God the Father almighty, Maker of heaven and earth” (Apostles’ Creed).  We believe it because we trust that God is telling us the truth about his Creation.  Our Lord not only created it, he still loves it, cares for it, blesses it, and sustains it.  This was all put into motion when our Lord created the world.  When God created the vegetation, he blessed it.  “God said, ‘Let the earth produce plants—vegetation that produces seed, and trees that bear fruit with its seed in it—each according to its own kind on the earth,’ and it was so” (Genesis 11:1).  This blessing assures us that seeds will continue to produce the next harvest.  We plant them, even though we have no control over how they will grow.  But God does.  So, when we pray, “Give us this day our daily bread,” we are only asking God to keep his word and to continue his blessing to provide fruits, vegetables, nuts, and berries for another season.

       When God created the animals, he blessed them as well.  “God blessed them when he said, ‘Be fruitful and multiply.  Fill the waters of the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth’” (Genesis 1:22).  Just as God blessed the fish and the birds, so he also blessed all land animals.  Year after year, the animals reproduce.  We get to marvel at their colors, speed, power, and agility.  Some we prepare in the crockpot or on the grill.  So, when we pray, “Give us this day our daily bread,” we are asking God to continue his creative blessing upon all the fish, birds, and animals.  And we acknowledge that our bacon cheeseburgers and chicken nuggets come from him.

    When you consider the individual petitions of the Lord’s Prayer, six out of seven petitions have to do with the kingdom of God and spiritual blessings.  That’s because the spiritual blessings have eternal value.  But Jesus did not dismiss our earthly needs.  He taught, “Do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’  For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.  But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matthew 6:31-33). 

     Our Lord knows that we live an earthly life.  We need food, clothing, and shelter for basic survival.  But our Lord usually gives us far more than our most basic needs.  Even if our diet were limited to bread, just think of the variety God supplies.  There is wheat, rye, pumpernickel, and sourdough.  There are croissants, bagels, and doughnuts.  There are tortillas, pitas, and naan.  You get the idea.  But our Lord also provides spices and herbs, fruits and vegetables, fish and meat, and so forth.  Our Lord is most generous in how he blesses us with food.  He also provides clothing, shelter, orderly society, governmental structure, the change of seasons, art, music, laughter, and so on.  When we pray, “Give us this day our daily bread,” we are giving thanks to our Father in heaven for his fatherly goodness in all these things.  We thank him for the blessings which make life more than a matter of survival, but bring us happiness and comfort. 

     Our Father in heaven demonstrates his amazing generosity in providing daily bread to all the world.  As Martin Luther teaches us to confess about this petition, “God surely gives daily bread without our asking, even to all the wicked” (Luther’s Small Catechism: Lord’s Prayer, 4^th Petition).  Our Father is pleased to sustain the lives of all people, whether they acknowledge him or not.  Jesus said, “Your Father who is in heaven … makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust” (Matthew 5:45).  This shows just how loving and gracious our Father is.  That love and care is not limited to people, either.  God loves all that he has made.  He cares for every creature.  Psalm 145 reminds us, “The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food in due season.  You open your hand; you satisfy the desire of every living thing” (Psalm 145:15-16, emphasis added). 

     Our Father in heaven is kind in bringing variety and generous in supplying abundance.  But mankind has often been unappreciative of God’s goodness.  What God provides is never enough or good enough.  Even in the Garden of Eden, where “God said, ‘Look, I have given you every plant that produces seed on the face of the whole earth, and every tree that bears fruit that produces seed.  It will be your food’” (Genesis 1:29), even there the man and the woman craved fruit from the one tree God had forbidden.  And so it continues.  God’s provides, but his provisions receive criticism.  When the Israelites were wandering in the wilderness for forty years, the Lord provided manna for them.  This was bread that they did not have to grow, harvest, and mill.  They simply had to collect what God miraculously provided every morning—daily bread in the truest sense of the word.  If the Lord had not provided it, the Israelites would have died.  Nevertheless, God’s gifts were not good enough.  They complained, “We are disgusted by this worthless food” (Numbers 21:5)! 

     You and I may not declare our disgust, but we are seldom content.  We envy people who have been blessed with more wealth.  We are jealous of people whose blessings are shaped differently.  This does not mean that God has failed to provide your daily bread; it means that you are not content with God’s blessings.  Or perhaps you do not trust that God will provide your needs.  Do you worry that God will fail you?  Now, if you and I pour our money into luxuries and frills—and look through your house, it is a lot of luxuries and frills—it is not God’s fault that the bills do not get paid.  Repent, because God is always faithful.  Even poor people have what they need to live.  Poor people even manage to have large families.  They may live on meager means, but they still live.  God provides daily bread, just as he promises.

     Jesus warned us, “A man’s life is not measured by how many possessions he has” (Luke 12:15).  At the same time, God’s love is not measured by how many possessions we have.  God’s love is demonstrated by the fact that God made himself part of his creation.  The Lord took on flesh and entered this world to deliver us from our sins—for our failure to give thanks, for our failure to trust him, for our coveting other people’s blessings, and for our desire to collect more and to crave what is better or even what is forbidden.  Jesus perfectly trusted his Father to provide for his needs, even though he had no place to lay his head.  Jesus went to the cross where his only possession—his garments—were stripped from him.  The only thing that Jesus had possession of when he suffered and died was our sins.  He paid for those with his life.  But in doing so, he covered the debt we owed and atoned for the obedience we had not given. 

     And now, Jesus still has connected himself to created things to bring the benefits of this salvation to us.  Jesus attaches his salvation to the waters of baptism to wash you clean of every stain of sin.  Jesus attaches himself to the bread of holy communion.  Under this bread, Jesus sustains your faith with the body that has overcome death.  Jesus attaches himself to the wine in the cup.  Under this wine, Jesus gives you the blood which purifies you of all sin.  Daily bread will sustain your life for hours, but the Bread of Life will grant you life without end.  This is what we truly hunger for, and our Lord supplies this need, too.

     “Give us this day our daily bread.”  The heavenly Father knows that you need it, and he will provide it.  But this daily bread only has value for a while.  Therefore, this is what the Lord says: “Hey, all of you who are thirsty, come to the water, even if you have no money!  Come, buy and eat!  Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost.  Why do you spend money on something that is not bread?  Why do you waste your labor on something that does not satisfy?  Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good.  Satisfy your appetite with rich food.  Turn your ear toward me, and come to me.  Listen, so that you may continue to live” (Isaiah 55:1-3).  The day will come when you won’t care about what you will eat or what you will drink or what you will wear.  For, your life on earth will have come to its end. 

     Your Father in heaven provides all you need for this life.  Better, your Father in heaven supplies all that you need for eternal life.   He gives you the Bread of Life.  He clothes you in garments of salvation.  He will bring you to heavenly mansions.   Food, clothing, shelter.  It is all you need.  And your Father gives it for free.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Sermon -- Christian Funeral for John Melchior Vogeli V (August 2, 2025)

This sermon was preached at Harry J. Will Funeral Home in Livonia.  John received Christian burial at Glen Eden Lutheran Cemetery in Livonia.

His obituary can be found here: https://www.dignitymemorial.com/obituaries/livonia-mi/john-vogeli-12467243

Christian Funeral for John Melchior Vogeli V

July 3, 1949 – July 27, 2025

PSALM 84

JOHN HAS RECEIVED A LOVELY DWELLING PLACE.

In the name + of Jesus.

     I only got to know John Vogeli over the past few years at StoryPoint.  Obviously, those were not his best years.  I remember John showing me a drawing he had made.  It was an image for the upcoming Sunday of the Church year, including its Latin name.  That’s not what people usually draw in their spare time.  Right away, I concluded, “This guy likes church!”  I was not wrong.  His confession fits with the Psalm: “How lovely is your dwelling place, O LORD of hosts!  My soul longs, yes, faints for the courts of the LORD; my heart and flesh sing for joy to the living God” (Psalm 84:1-2).  And now John has received a lovely dwelling place.

     John got to enjoy a number of dwelling places throughout his life.  He was born on July 3, 1949 in Libertyville, Illinois, but Michigan was home for most of his life.  His parents saw to it that he was born again through holy baptism.  He was marked as a child of God.  He received the gift of the Holy Spirit, which means that the Holy Spirit made his dwelling in John.  He lived with the blessing cited in Psalm 84, “Blessed are those whose strength is in you, in whose heart are the highways to Zion” (Psalm 84:5).

     John lived and worked in various places—from college at Concordia in Ann Arbor to the train yards of Pontiac, Hamtramck, and Flat Rock.  No doubt, John was especially fond of his dwelling place with Janice, wherever that happened to be.  Jan, you got to enjoy 56 years of marriage together.  It is more than most people get.  And God blessed that union with children and grandchildren.  God be praised for all of that!

     When John was confirmed, the pastor blessed him with this Scripture verse: “Jesus (said), ‘If anyone loves me, he will hold on to my word.  My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him’” (John 14:23).  The Lord made John his dwelling place throughout his life.  John’s love for God and his word was undeniable.  As I had mentioned, John liked church.  He served in many capacities—playing piano for the elderly, singing in the choir, serving as an usher, and too many more to mention.  Of course, the main thing is not that John served his Lord.  The main thing is that the Lord served him.

     John concurred with the Psalmist: “My soul longs, yes, faints for the courts of the LORD; my heart and flesh sing for joy to the living God” (Psalm 84:2).  Why did it matter that much?  Because John recognized his need for a Savior.  I never found John to be insulting, rude, perverse, or given to anger.  Of course, the only times I ever spoke with John was in connection with chapels or devotions.  People tend to behave at church.  But John never hesitated to confess his sins in our services.  He knew that all people are sinners, and he knew it was true of him.  I am sure that you choose to remember the good times and his godly examples.  But, Jan, I am willing to bet that you could recall a few times where John proved he was a sinner.  His death is evidence that he was a sinner; for “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23).  John knew it.  He confessed it.  And that is why his soul longed, yes, fainted for the courts of the Lord. 

     John yearned for God’s lovely dwelling place.  “For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD bestows favor and honor.  No good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly.  O LORD of hosts, blessed is the one who trusts in you” (Psalm 84:11-12)!  The Lord God is a sun, and he has shone the light of his love upon John.  God’s love is made known by his Son who was sent to redeem sinners.  God does not want sinners evicted from his mercies; he wants all to dwell in his kingdom.  So, Jesus Christ came to take away the sins of the world.

     The Lord God is a shield.  Jesus shielded John from the Father’s wrath by taking the blow for him.  At the cross, Jesus was forsaken by his Father so that John would not be forsaken in life or in death.  Jesus bore the curse so that John would have the Father’s blessing.  Jesus died in shame so that John could live in glory.  Through Jesus, the Lord bestowed favor and honor upon John.  He did not withhold from John any good thing, but poured out his mercy, grace, forgiveness, and peace.  John yearned for God’s dwelling place where he received the benefits of Jesus’ saving work.  John was absolved of his sins.  He was comforted by God’s promises.  He was strengthened and kept in the true faith by holy communion.  And now John has received a lovely dwelling place in heavenly mansions; for he is a child of God.

     The Psalmist proclaims, “A day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere” (Psalm 84:10).  Our Lord gave John over 27,000 days on earth.  No matter how great the blessings were here, he is being given so much more and so much better.  Today, it may look like death has won, but that is not true.  Jesus Christ, who shielded John from God’s wrath by his death, has conquered death.  Jesus lives.  Jesus holds authority over death and the grave.  And soon Jesus, who clothed John in garments of salvation, will raise him up to be clothed in glory.  All those who have fallen asleep in Jesus will be awakened on the Last Day with glorified and perfected bodies.  That means John will be forever free from the earaches, the lame feet, and any other weaknesses he had.  You will get him back not for a paltry 27,000 days, but forever.  John receives a lovely dwelling place, a new heaven and a new earth.  By clinging to Christ and to his promises, you will join him there.

     “Blessed are those who dwell in your house, ever singing your praise” (Psalm 84:4)!  John loved singing God’s praises.  How much greater the song and how much more joyous the celebration as he joins with angels and archangels and all the company of heaven!  Our songs may be muffled by tears today, but we still sing with confidence because of our hope.  It is the same as John’s hope for a lovely dwelling place, and it is a hope that will not be disappointed.  Jesus Christ has secured it. 

     John loved his wife, Jan.  John loved his sons, John, Michael, and Andrew.  John loved his daughters-in-law.  John loved his grandchildren.  You all know that better than I do.  What I remember about John is this: This guy loved church.  What brought us both comfort is this: Jesus loves and saves sinners.  Because of that, we will receive a lovely—and an eternal—dwelling place.  “O LORD of hosts, blessed is the one who trusts in you” (Psalm 84:4)!  John is so blessed.  John is at peace.  And, no doubt, he is singing.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.